


Dust To Dust

by idrilhadhafang



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Badass Poe Dameron, Badass Rey, Before Punching Him Out, By Palpatine, Did You Just Flip Off Cthulu, Fix-It, Force-Sensitive Poe Dameron, Kylo Ren and Rey Are Related, M/M, Past Rape/Non-con, badass Ben Solo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:34:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25253179
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/idrilhadhafang/pseuds/idrilhadhafang
Summary: Poe’s awakening in the Force and a timely decision of Ben’s leads to a different ending for The Rise of Skywalker.
Relationships: Poe Dameron/Ben Solo, Poe Dameron/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Poe Dameron/Kylo Ren
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9
Collections: The Darkpilot Library





	Dust To Dust

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing.

“As once I fell, so falls the last Skywalker!”

With one, gloating statement from Palpatine, Ben Solo was all but flung into the pit; it was thanks to his Force training that he managed to grab onto...something and force his way up towards the top. Towards where Rey and Palpatine dueled. Rey was strong, fearless, but she couldn’t do this alone. 

A Jedi was never alone. 

And it was then that Ben heard running footsteps. He spun around, only to spot the man that he never thought would come to his aid — and yet it felt right. 

Poe Dameron. 

Palpatine was temporarily diverted from Rey. Of course he was. He couldn’t pass up an opportunity to gloat. “Poe Dameron,” he sneered. “An emergence in the Force, too late. You love this man, this monster? Love won’t save you. The monster’s fool of a grandfather is proof enough of that.”

Ben should have gotten angry. He almost wanted to. For the insult to Poe, to begin with. But Palpatine?

Palpatine always was a hammy gloater.

”You’re lying about having Rey possessed,” Ben said. “I always knew you were a liar. What you said to my grandfather. What you said to me.” Then, “You may be good at lying, Your Highness, but you’re bone dead stupid.”

”Indeed?” Palpatine growled. 

”For example,” Ben said, “Don’t repeat the mistake you made with Master Windu.”

He raised his lightsaber, even as Poe fired at Palpatine. 

The combined force of the deflected Force Lightning and Poe’s blaster bolts reduced Palpatine to nothing more than dust. 

***

There was a moment after killing Palpatine, when the beast was reduced to nothingness, that Poe turned to Ben. “You’re here,” he said. “You’re really here.”

”I am. And so are you,” Ben said. “Poe — I didn’t want to hurt you. Snoke ordered me to. And I wasn’t strong enough to resist him. He said he’d kill you and I...I believed him...” 

Poe hugged him then. He didn’t know if it was true or not, but having Ben back, on the path to redemption...

”Oh, Poe,” Ben murmured, “I’m sorry about Snap. About Mom. I’m sorry about everything.”

”You’ll stay?” Poe said. 

”Always.” Ben wasn’t about to leave Poe again. 

It was Rey who spoke. “You and him...?”

Was she accusing him? Poe couldn’t tell. 

”I’ll explain later,” Ben said. “Let’s leave Exegol behind for good.”

That Poe couldn’t argue with. 

***

The Falcon at least gave them some degree of privacy when it picked them up, as well as Rey and Poe’s X-wings via tractor beam. Rey was relieved for that. Ben sat with her and Poe and said, “I owe Rey an explanation too.”

”Out with it,” Rey said. She wouldn’t deny that she was rattled from killing her own grandfather. More than rattled, actually. 

Ben took a deep breath. “Palpatine’s my great-grandfather, technically. He...well, he manipulated a woman named Shmi Skywalker. My great-grandmother. Used the...manipulation of the Force to impregnate her.”

”That beast,” Rey whispered. Poe looked sick as well. 

”But as a result of his act of depravity,” Ben said, “The Skywalker family tree is...odd. My uncle and mother are technically your cousins, my grandfather your uncle, Snoke your uncle as well, and my father your...cousin-in-law.”

”And you, Ben?”

”It was why I thought you were so familiar on the Starkiller planet,” Ben said. “We’re cousins.”

”Oh...”

Rey slumped on the medbay bed, feeling, for a moment, like she had disconnected from reality. And then the tears came. 

”I don’t believe it,” she said. “All I wanted was my family and...and most of them are gone. Ben..."

”It’s my fault,” Ben said. “My own ego. My own unfailing idiocy.”

”There were a lot of factors, Ben.” Rey inhaled just to calm herself. 

”You were misled,” Poe said. “Manipulated. I just wish you’d told me.”

”I should have.” Ben turned to Poe, and looked at him — and there was such an open vulnerability in his eyes that Rey felt guilty intruding on such a private moment. And she almost envied Poe. She had hardly known her cousin, part of a dyad. She’d been cut off from her family, from her way of life, from a larger world, because of her grandfather’s megalomania. 

”You two want to be left alone?” Rey said. 

A nod from Poe. “For a moment. You...you probably need time too, Rey.”

Rey headed towards the cockpit then, where Lando was. Where Finn was, and Jannah. Even hugging Finn, even telling Lando the truth and feeling him practically crushing her in a hug, Rey knew she was grateful, overwhelmingly so, for the things she’d found — the things the Force had brought back. 


End file.
